Trilinear embedding for divergence-form operators with complex coefficients (Q6076328)

Let \(\Omega \subseteq {\mathbb R}^d\) be an \textit{arbitrary} open set. The authors consider the triples of exponents \(p, q, r \in (1, \infty)\) related by the identity \(1 / p + 1 / q + 1 / r = 1\) and triples of uniformly elliptic operators \(A,B,C\) in divergence form with complex coefficients and subject to mixed boundary conditions on \(\Omega\). It is also assumed that these operators are \(p\)-elliptic (the concept of \(p\)-ellipticity was introduced by the first two authors [J. Eur. Math. Soc. (JEMS) 22, No. 10, 3175--3221 (2020; Zbl 1458.35148)]). The main result is the following trilinear estimate with dimension independent constant \(C\) \[\int\limits_0^\infty \int\limits_\Omega \left|\nabla e^{-tA}f \right| \left|\nabla e^{-tB}g \right| \left| e^{-tC}h \right| dx dt \leq C \|f\|_p \|g\|_q \|h\|_r,\] where operators \(A,B,C\) are \(\max\{p, q, r\}\)-elliptic. \par The proof utilizes the method of three-variable Bellman functions and heat flows. \par The authors give the following applications of their theory. (i) They introduce paraproducts associated with three different semigroups \[\Theta(f,g,h) = - \int\limits_{0}^{\infty} \int\limits_{\mathbb{R}^d} \Big(\frac{d}{dt} e^{-tA} f\Big) (e^{-tB} g) (e^{-tC} h) dx dt \] and prove the estimate \[|\Theta(f,g,h)| \leq C \|f\|_{p}\|g\|_{q}\|h\|_r\] with constant only depending on the exponents \(p, q, r\) and the \(\ast\)-ellipticity constants of \(A, B, C\). (ii) It is proved that the \textit{modified square function} \[\left(\int\limits^{\infty}_{0}T_{t}\left(\left|{\nabla e^{-tA}f}\right|^{2}\right)(x)d t\right)^{1/2}\] (\(T_t\) is Neumann heat semigroup on \(\Omega\)) is bounded on \(L^p(\Omega)\), \(p \geq 2\), and the norm estimates do not depend on the underlying dimension \(d\). (iii) For general divergence-form operators with complex coefficients and on arbitrary open sets \(\Omega\) the authors prove a Kato-Ponce-type inequality (known also as \textit{fractional Leibniz rule}) with dimension independent constant. The approach to (ii), (iii) through trilinear embeddings seems to be new.